Valve.



C. 0; RUWLEY.

VALVE. '(Applichtion filed July 14,1902.

(No Iodol.)

HIM"!!! WITNESSES.

Patented Dec. 2, l 9l1)2.

INVENTOR.

NITED AES CHARLES O. ROW'LEY, OF TOLEDO, OHIO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TOARTHUR J. BOOTE, OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

VALVE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 714,747, dated December2, 1902.

Application filed July 14,1902. Serial No. 115,417. (No model.)

To. all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES O. RoWLEY, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Toledo, in the county of Lucas and State of Ohio,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Valves, of whichthe following is a specification, reference being had therein to theaccompanying drawings.

This invention relates to safety checkvalves for use in connection withfluid-pressure brake mechanism; and its object is to prevent the suddensetting of the brakes when an accident occurs-such as the dividing ofthe train, separation of the hosecoupling, or bursting of the hoseand toprovide an adj ustment to regulate the amount of reduction in pressurewhich will be required to close the valve, so that the valve may be setto operate as soon as there is a reduction of pressure below theordinary fluctuations caused by leakage, &c., and so that the same valvemay be used in connection with systems operating underdifferentpressures and conditions.

It is also an object of this invention to so arrange and construct thesame that a comparatively long spring for actuating the valve may beused, thus providing for a greater throw of the valve and the freepassage of the air therethrough, and to provide certain other new anduseful features, all as hereinafter more fully described, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a centrallongitudinal section of a device embodying my invention; Fig. 2, a sideelevation of the valve detached, and Fig. 3 a top plan view of thevalve.

As shown in the drawings, 1 is the casing, similar in form to that of aglobe-valve, having screw-threaded openings to receive the ends of thetrain-pipe and provided with a downwardly-extending portion 2 at itslower side, which is internally screw-threaded and closed by ascrew-plug 3, held adjusted by a lock-nut 4. Within the casing is a wall5,

which divides the same into two parts and forms a seat extendinglongitudinally thereof for the-valve 6, which valve is provided withdownwardly-extending lugs 7 to engage the opening in the wall formingthe seat and guide the valve. Opposite the valve-seat and in axial linetherewith and with the portion 7 2 of the casing is an opening in thetop of the casing closed by a hollow screw-cap S, which extends into thecasing and forms a stop to engage the projection 9 on the top of thevalve and also forms a guide to receive the upwardly-extended portion orvalve-stem 1O of said valve. To normally hold the valve away from itsseat and in contact with the cap 8, a coiled spring 11 is provided whichengages the valve at one end and extending downward within the portion 2of the casing engages a recess provided therefor in the plug 3 at itsopposite end. A small hole 12 is provided in the valve, so that when thevalve is seated by the parting of the train-pipe or other accident,causing a great reduction in the pressure at the lower side of thevalve, the air will escape through said hole and, reducing the pressureabove the valve, slowly set the brakes.

The tension of the spring 11 may be increased or diminished, so that thevalve will seat with a greater or less reduction in the pressure byscrewing the plug 3 in or out, and the device is thus made adaptable foruse in brake systems where a very high pressure is carried or in thosecarrying a lower pressure, and by forming the casing with the extension2, thus providing for the use of a comparatively long spring, the throwof the valve may be increased to increase the opening for the passage ofthe air. In this construction the valve is normally held' away from thecap by the thin projections 9, and thus the air-pressure can act on thetop of the valve to force it to its seat only through the narrowpassages between the projections, and as said valve is also held somedistance from its seat it is not afiected by the fluctuations inpressure caused by leakage, &c., as readily as it would be if the valvewere raised but a short distance and the air had free access to itsupper side, and therefore a spring which acts with a less reduction inpressure may be used.

It is very desirable that the valve be operated by as small a reductionin pressure as may be and not be operated by the ordinary fluctuationscaused by leakage, &c. for the reason that if the valve closes early thebrakes gradually.

are prevented from being set before the valve closes to hold thepressure and set them It is therefore imperative that some means foradjusting the tension of the spring be provided, especially as springsof the same size and form seldom have the same strength and after longuse become weaker.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim is- 1. In acheck-valve for brake systems, the combination with the casing having avalveseat and an opening below the seat, of a valve provided with anopening therethrough adapted to engage the seat, a spring to engage theValve and normally hold the same away from its seat, and a screw-plugwithin said opening in the casing and engaging the lower end of thespring.

2. In a check-valve for brake systems, the combination with the casingprovided with a wall formed with a valve-seat and an opening above theseat in axial line therewith and an extension below the seat open at itslower end and internally screw-threaded, a valve to engage the seat andprovided with an opening for the slow escape of the air, lugs on saidvalve engaging the seat-opening to guide the valve, a hollow screw capin the opening above the valve, a valve-stem on the valve engaging thecap and guiding the valve, projections on the valve to engage the innerend of the cap, a spring engaging the lower side of the valve andextending downward in the extension of the casin g, a screw-threadedplug Within the lower end of the extension and engaging the lower end ofsaid spring, and a lock-nut on said plug.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES O. ROWLEY.

Witnesses:

D. D. GRANT, L. V. N ICHOLAS.

